Dr. Kanade’s
first major development in Robotics research at Carnegie Mellon was the
design of the world’s first Direct Drive Arm[10pp].
Direct Drive Robotic Arms are currently the best method of design for
mechanical arms, due to the removal of transmission mechanisms between the
motors and loads. rather than using reducers and chain belts which produce
uneven movements. The result is an arm that can move freely and smoothly,
allowing for high speed precision robots. Design of the arm was completed in
1981, and successful patent was obtained a few years later.

With the success of the Direct Drive Arm I[7pp], work began on an
improved design. This improvement allowed increased control, a wider range of
manipulation, and an increase in payload. This new arm, called Direct Drive Arm II[6pp], featured an
electric six-degree of freedom movement, direct drive joints, and a minimum
payload. Both arms[8pp] were
technological breakthroughs in robotic mechanics, and eventually led to
Direct Drive Arm II being placed in the former ComputerMuseum in Boston in the late 1980s.